Zarqawi's demotion

AFP:

IRAQ'S resistance has replaced Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi as political head of the rebels, confining him to a military role, the son of Osama bin Laden's mentor said in Jordan.

"The Iraqi resistance's high command asked Zarqawi to give up his political role and replaced him with an Iraqi, because of several mistakes he made," said Hudayf Azzam, who claims close contacts with the rebels.

"Zarqawi's role has been limited to military action," said Azzam, whose late father Abdullah Azzam was the mentor of bin Laden, the al-Qaeda boss.

"Zarqawi bowed to the orders two weeks ago and was replaced by Iraqi national Abdullah bin Rashed al-Baghdadi," Azzam said.

Azzam, 35, whose father was known as the "prince of mujahideens", said he regularly receives "credible information on the resistance in Iraq".

He said Zarqawi "made many political mistakes", including "the creation of an independent organisation, al-Qaeda in Iraq".

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If he were winning, like the media seems to think, I do not believe he would be demoted. For those not invested in the US defeat in Iraq, it is pretty obvious that the Sunni insurgency has been defeated, and Sunni leaders are now looking to the US for protection and as a mediator. The violence that is playing out now is not a civil war, but more like a gang war, with rival gangs commiting atrocities against each other. None of the rival gangs has shown the capacity or even the inclination to attack goverment forces or the US and they continue to avoid contact except for the occassional placements of booby rap which are becoming more and more ineffective. The media still is holding the US on Iraqi goverment responsible for the gang violence rather than the perpetrators.